This weekend I spent an inordinate amount of time playing about with Bobbi Brown’s Scotch on the Rocks makeup collection. It’s absolutely delectable. Warm, shimmery tones that make you think of candlelight and sparkling champagne; rich shades like Bordeaux and Scarlet and Sultry Red that are as deep and sumptuous as velvet… And then there’s the packaging – perfect golden lipstick tubes and tortoiseshell compacts and the faux-crocodile-skin casing on the eye palette. Perhaps I have a completely overactive imagination, but it all makes me think of a big Christmas party thrown in an old Scottish castle; twinkling candles and enormous chandeliers and walls swathed in tartan and women elegantly swanning about in long satin gowns. The kind of Christmas party I always imagined I’d go to once I “grew up”, until I realised that those kind of parties exist mostly in Ferrero Rocher adverts and Richard Curtis films.

Anyway, we can but dream. Will you just look at those lipsticks? I usually balk at shimmery lipsticks, but these are decadent and pigmented and have more of a sculpting effect than anything too glittery. My instinct was to reach for the very palest (Beige Gold Shimmer) and the bright red (Sultry Red) but in actual fact my favourite of the bunch turned out to be Malt Shimmer, second from the left, which is a medium, hi-shine nude. (You can see it in my makeup look further down the page.) Continue reading →

It’s that time of year again; Space NK give you £15 off when you spend £60 so that you can try something new. Actually, that time of year has been and gone, because the main event finished earlier this week, but I have an exclusive code just for readers of A Model Recommends. Enter AMR15 in the promo code box before checkout, anytime until midnight on Sunday (18th October) and you’ll get £15 off your online order.

Everyone always has their favourites to stock up on when these offers are running, but the idea behind the promotion is to actually explore brands or products you’ve never tried before. So in the spirit of beauty adventurousness (is that even a word?) I’ve been trying out new stuff. Here we go.

The Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette. How it has taken me so long to give this a whirl I have no idea. It’s a one-stop-perfected-skin-shop with three different light-diffusing powders to blur fine lines and pores and give your face a gorgeous glow. Find more info here – it’s £56.

Caudalie Resveratrol Eye Lifting Balm – £36 here. I’ve been using this on undereyes and lids – it’s intensely hydrating and feels refreshing and cool without leaving the skin uncomfortably tight.

Aurelia Skincare Refine & Polish Miracle Balm, £57 here. I loved the cleanser, and now I have a newer love in this 2-in-1 product that can be used as an instant exfoliant or an enzyme mask. (Or if it’s body stuff you’re after, I cannot rave about their dry oil enough!) The tube I’ve pictured is a sample from a gift set, just in case you’re (pleasantly) surprised when the proper one turns out to be bigger!

Nail polishes from Smith & Cult (see the range here). Swanky packaging, cool names and colours that are all wearable and non-ridiculous. Which is rare. This is nail stuff for grown-ups – no ridiculous shades or stick-on cupcake shapes or whatever…

You can browse the virtual beauty shelves at Space NK here – again, the code for £15 off £60 order is AMR15 .

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I mentioned Diptyque’s luscious Multi-Use Exfoliating Clay for the Face earlier on this year, but I feel that it most definitely requires a second visit. Because somehow, out of the dozens of beauty products that are crammed into my bathroom, this understated little tub of creamy clay has managed to become one of my favourite bathtime rituals. It has the kind of sumptuous, rich texture that just begs you to get stuck in and the subtle scent makes it a joy to use. This is the kind of mask that you should crack out when you have the worst ever PMT; it’s just about functional enough to make your skin feel clean and de-greased, but at the same time it manages to feel like a proper beauty treat. Cool, creamy and comforting but also exfoliating enough to be a worthwhile skincare step.

As the name suggests, the Multi-Use Exfoliating Clay can be used in more than one way; spread it over the skin and massage in gently to slough off dead skin cells, or leave it on for five minutes or more as a luxurious mask. As far as masks go, it has to be said that there are far more powerful options if you’re looking for deep-cleansing and skin-polishing (I love Omorovicza’s Deep Cleansing Mask and Glamglow and Alpha-H’s Liquid Gold Mask) but none of these offer that extra little pampering touch. The delicate “bed of rose petals” feel that we can so often crave, especially when faced with an array of high-performance no-frills skincare options. Yes we want results, but sometimes don’t we also want something that will make us feel a tiny bit more cherished? In that “treat to self” kind of way?

And so I’ve been reaching for Diptyque’s pot of clay on a frequent basis. It’s the perfect blend of functional skincare and luxury goods and I genuinely look forward to using it, though I try not to dig in more than twice or three times a week. It’s probably gentle enough to use every day, if you felt so inclined – it’s not drying in the slightest – but it would be an expensive beauty habit! It costs £44 at SpaceNK here.

By the by, another luxurious and creamy clay that I’ve been trying: NUXE’s Clarifying Cream Mask with Rose Petals. Similar to Diptyque’s Multi-Use clay in many respects, including the gorgeous, creamy texture, this mask has been formulated to purify and cleanse but again with that added (and unexpected) touch of rose. Like Diptyque’s product, it’s perfect for days when you want your skin to feel clean and refined but don’t want something too hardcore. Both would be a good option if you were looking for a clay mask but wanted something that was kind and gentle on drier or more temperamental skin. Many clay masks are strongly geared towards those who have oily or combination skins; these have a softer “kid gloves” kind of approach. You can find the NUXE mask for a very (very!) reasonable £18.50 here.

Read more face mask reviews….

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